1. Field Of The Invention
The present invention relates in general to signalling devices and in particular to a system for summoning service personnel to a particular location in a restaurant or similar facility and for monitoring their response time.
Many modern restaurants and similar facilities are designed to provide various unique and pleasant surroundings for their customers who dine or are otherwise attended to. Many times, such facilities are very large and have complex layouts of tables or booths. Also, various decorative dividers and other decorative objects may be placed throughout the facility to enhance the privacy and enjoyment of the customers. However, regardless of the amount and quality of the decorations and other advantageous features, it is essential for the continued success of the facility that the service personnel who attend to the various needs of the customers do so in a rapid and efficient fashion. Failure to so respond results in excessively long waiting periods for the customers, thereby causing dissatisfaction. Thus, there is a need for a system which provides a means for a customer in such a facility to summon service personnel when desired and further which provides a means for the facility to monitor and evaluate the performance of its service personnel in responding to its customers.
2. Description Of The Prior Art
U.S. Pat. No. 3,821,707 to Peters discloses a wireless waitress call system for a restaurant, cocktail lounge, or similar facility. A central transmitter is activated by the operation of any one of a plurality of switches, a switch being located at each one of a plurality of tables or booths at the facility. The operation of any one of the switches causes the transmitter to transmit a signal of a particular distinctive frequency corresponding to the individual table at which the switch was operated. A receiver is mounted on a tray carried by the waitress. The receiver responds to the signals transmitted by the transmitter. The receiver is coupled to a plurality of indicating lights mounted on the tray, each relating to a different table or booth. Selective means are included in the receiver circuit such that, when a particular switch at a particular table or booth is operated, a corresponding light on the tray of the waitress is energized so as to inform the waitress that service is desired at the designated table or booth.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,222,111 to Sloan et al. discloses a method and apparatus for monitoring the status of tables in a restaurant. A processor unit is coupled by means of a plurality of serial data busses to a host unit and also to a plurality of service units. The host unit includes a plurality of push buttons which correspond respectively to tables within a particular service area of the restaurant. The processor unit computes and stores the status of each table in the restaurant. The processor also periodically computes and transmits display information representative of the updated status of the tables to the host unit and to the service unit. The status of a particular table is updated by depressing a corresponding table button of either the host station or the respective service station. The processor unit computes the updated status information and stores the updated table status in a memory of the processor unit. Running totals for each table can be stored in the processor unit and may be displayed after each meal, day, week, or month.
Other similar systems are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,796,668 to Sarfaty, 3,233,217 to Bost, Jr., 3,304,416 to Wolf, 3,310,797 to Auger, and 4,225,852 to Waters et al.